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It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. The flip side of that is that there are more than a few examples of insiders dumping stock prior to a period of weak performance. So before you buy or sell Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling.
What Is Insider Buying?
Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock in the company. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.
We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.
See our latest analysis for Casella Waste Systems
The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Casella Waste Systems
In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Chairman, John Casella, sold US$4.4m worth of shares at a price of US$44.70 per share. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$43.21. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. Given that the sale took place at around current prices, it makes us a little cautious but is hardly a major concern.
In the last twelve months insiders netted US$26m for 634856 shares sold. Insiders in Casella Waste Systems didn't buy any shares in the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!
If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Casella Waste Systems Insiders Are Selling The Stock
The last quarter saw substantial insider selling of Casella Waste Systems shares. In total, insiders dumped US$14m worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.
Does Casella Waste Systems Boast High Insider Ownership?
Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Casella Waste Systems insiders own about US$117m worth of shares (which is 5.7% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.